Gerald Honigman is a Florida educator who has done extensive doctoral work in Middle East studies, has lectured on numerous university and other platforms. He has debated many of the best Arab and pro-Arab academics in public debates and on television. Mr. Honigman is widely published in academic journals, magazines, newspapers and other publications.

The first week of September, 2012 brought with it the Democratic National Convention (DNC). This also occurred during the Hebrew month of Elul.

Since Biblical days, Elul has been a time for great soul-searching and repentance in preparation for the Ten Days of Awe, the period between the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur in the following month of Tishri.

During Elul, it has been customary, for millennia, to blow the shofar (the ram's horn) every morning (except on Sabbath) until the day before Rosh Hashanah. The penetrating blasts are meant to awaken one's soul to prompt mortals to reassess their lives and the errors of their ways.

This year, less than two weeks before Rosh Hashanah, there was a blast which came out of Charlotte, North Carolina's Democratic National Convention which might possibly have been one of the most profound ear-cleansing, eye-opening, Heaven-inspired wake-up calls of all time. It left all who listened and watched dumbfounded. G_d doth work in strange ways…

I'm referring, of course, to the fiasco surrounding events related to at least four key provisions dealing with Jewish and/or Israel-related issues removed from the Democratic National Platform--two of which were widely broadcast during a vote to reinstate them.

The fix was in, as the teleprompter revealed, and even though the required 2/3 majority votes to overturn were obviously not obtained despite several tries, the last minute changes were pushed through anyway. I was embarrassed for the folks running the show…

References to G_d and to previous Democratic positions on Jerusalem and to how Palestinian Arab refugees and Hamas were or were not to be dealt with were eliminated.

Gone was previous language recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's indivisible capital, and perhaps even more disturbing (since it fits in closely with President Obama's long-standing endorsement of the so-called Saudi Peace Plan as the basis for Arab-Israeli negotiations), the revised document removed earlier notations stating that any Palestinian Arab refugees (both real and fudged) would have to be settled in a future Palestinian Arab state--not within Israel itself. By the way, thank the man most Jews love to belittle (or worse) for that earlier inclusion…Republican President George W. Bush.

Upon Prime Minister Sharon's unilateral withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, Dubya gave Israel an official letter with two key provisions in it. One stated that Israel would never have to return to the vulnerable armistice lines (and he called them just that--not borders) of 1949, which made it a mere 9 to15 miles wide, forever vulnerable to bisection and attack, and the other stated that any returning Arab refugees would have to go to the new (22nd) Arab state--not overwhelm the Jews in their sole, minuscule one. Please recall that more Jews fled so-called "Arab"/Muslim lands than vice-versa due to the war Arabs started with their invasion of a re-born Israel in 1948.

Before we proceed to the provision dealing with Hamas, the organization which overtly calls for Israel's destruction (the State Department's bad cops juxtaposed to the more covert Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah Arafatians in suits--the Palestinian Arab Authority's alleged good cops, who call any negotiations with Jews merely a "Trojan Horse" to further openly-admitted destruction-in-stages plans), consider the following…

Prior to the DNC, two key provisions of the so-called Saudi Peace Plan, which Obama insists Israel basically accept, go against the letter Israel received from President Bush. Obama's beloved Saudi Plan calls, instead, for Israel to return to the 1949 Auschwitz/armistice lines and then, after becoming once again a mere zipper of state, for the Jews to allow themselves to be inundated by Jihadis raised on bloodlust since kindergarten days.

Israel is simply expected, by supposedly one of the most "pro-Israel American presidents ever" (at least in Obama's and his head-in-the-sand Hebrew supporters' own words), to abandon the post-'67 War promise of UNSC Resolution 242 for a territorial compromise which would allow it to receive real, more secure, defensible borders to replace those suicidal armistice lines.

While there is other disturbing news related to Israel coming out of the DNC, the last item we'll explore for now involves the removal of 2008 platform language which stated that “The United States and its Quartet partners should continue to isolate Hamas until it renounces terrorism, recognizes Israel’s right to exist, and abides by past agreements.” Hamas is simply not mentioned at all in the 2012 version…

My friends, if what is described above are not blasts from a Heavenly Shofar to awaken too many folks from a self-imposed stupor or slumber, then what amazing timing and coincidence...

When, at the very last moment, a tight presidential race evidently whispered in Obama's ear to have at least some of the damage undone as best as possible by reinstating language on Jerusalem and G_d, the volume of boos greeting those contrived moves was as telling as any shofar blast.
You heard them, for sure…but were you truly listening ? And were you watching the anger of the Democratic masses when the connection between Jerusalem and Jews was re-instated into the platform?

Welcome to the new Democratic Party !

New…but, really, not so new.

Michael--Israel is one of the top three evils in the world--Moore; Jesse (Mr. Shakedown Artist)--Hymietown--Jackson; Jimmy--Apartheid Israel--Carter; Al--let's go get the "diamond merchants"--Sharpton; and many more folks just like them have been in the forefront of the news for too many years now, heroes of vast numbers of those same Democrats booing G_d and the mere thought of Jews having Jerusalem as their capital.

Before closing, please allow me just one last thought on the above…

Millennia before there ever was a Paris, London, Madrid, Berlin, Tokyo, Moscow, Istanbul, Washington, and so forth, imperfect, human Jews were living in their capital of Jerusalem and giving to the world the very concept of G_d the DNC platform rejected. Their religion's two daughter faiths, Christianity and Islam, would later pick up the message as well, add to and change it a bit, and spread it around much of the known world.

Israel, indeed, thus became an "Ohr Lagoyim"--a Light unto the Nations--which G_d called it to be in the Hebrew Bible.

As Jews prepare for the fast-approaching High Holy Days, may the blasts of both the worldly and Heavenly shofars be understood and acted upon by both themselves and others as well.

Shanah tovah !

May it be a good, sweet year for the entire world, and may we all work together to help to achieve this.